We Must Arm Ourselves For Battle! Series

We must Arm Ourselves for battle!

1 Peter 4:1-6

Introduction

I read this news article on the internet as I was preparing this sermon this is exactly what the article read:

When 53-year-old Danny Anderson was feeding his horses Monday night, a 5-foot rattler slithered onto his central Washington property.

Anderson and his 27-year-old son, Benjamin, pinned the snake with an irrigation pipe and cut off its head with a shovel. A few more strikes to the head left it sitting under a pickup truck.

"When I reached down to pick up the head, it raised around and did a backflip almost, and bit my finger," Anderson said. "I had to shake my hand real hard to get it to let loose."

His wife insisted they go to the hospital, and by the time they arrived at Prosser Memorial Hospital 10 minutes later, Anderson’s tongue was swollen and the venom was spreading. He then was taken by ambulance 30 miles to a Richland hospital to get the full series of six shots he needed.

It turns out a snake can still strike for an hour even after its head is cut off.

If another rattlesnake comes along, Anderson said he’ll likely try to kill it again, but said he’ll grab a shovel and bury it right there.

Satan is a defeated foe. Like the head of a dead snake, we face the danger of the world, the flesh and the devil. Although defeated, these forces can cause damage.

Like taking a shovel to a snake, 1 Peter 4:1-6 calls us to arm ourselves for battle.

The apostle Peter provides us as believers with four perspectives motivating us to be strong when living out our Christian lives.

Read Scriptures: 1 Peter 4:1-6

I. I must have the attitude of Christ.

Vs. 1 “Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because he who has suffered in his body is done with sin”

Therefore obviously points back to what Peter wrote in last weeks passage, that at the Cross Christ endured His greatest suffering, dying under divine judgment as the just for the unjust.

The apostle Peter in this verse tells us, “Since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude.” We are told in scripture to have the mind of Christ.

What was Jesus’ attitude in life. He came to seek and save that which was lost. He loved people, He was involved with people, He sacrificially gave himself for people.

If the church is going to make a difference in this world, we will need to have the attitude of Christ. We will have to put self aside. You might say well I’m pretty comfortable with my life, and what I do. I try to give, I try to witness, I try to read my bible, I try to come to church as much as possible.

Be honest with yourself, do you really try? Is being Christ like that important to you? Then why is it that we are not doing more to reach the lost. Why is it that we are becoming more and more closed off to others, we are not investing time in others to do personal discipleship. Do we really want to make a difference in this community. If this church had to close its doors, would this community notice it? Peter says, to be strong in this life we must arm ourselves with the attitude of Christ.

II. I must know the Will of God for my life.

Vs. 2 “As a result, he does not live the rest of his earthly life for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God.”

In this world that we live in we are being pulled to live like the world lives, to fulfill the desires of the flesh.

Peter is telling believers to arm themselves with a commitment to do the will of God and abandon their former sins.

One of the main questions that I hear, is how can I know what God wants me to do in my life? Well there are some non-negotionables, every believer is given the mandate to give of there time, talent, and money. Every Christian is given the mandate to live a Holy, descent, quiet life. Every Christian is given the mandate to share there faith with others. Every Christian is given the mandate to study the Scriptures. Every Christian is given the mandate support the local church with attendance.

Jesus says, “if you were not faithful in these things, how can I give you anything else”.

Those are non-negotionables, which means that according to the word of God, this is something that every believer is explicitly told to do, we have no option. The problem is too often we want to pick and choose, and we wonder why we are so easily thrown off course by the enemy. Peter says arm yourself with a commitment to do the will of God.